Council allocates $200,000 for inner-city school literacy program

The Las Vegas City Council approved on Wednesday an agreement to help fund a nonprofit organization’s literacy program at two inner-city schools.

The Public Education Foundation will be given $200,000 from the city’s general fund for the effort, or $100,000 for each of two years for the Literacy Liftoff program.

The program will be aimed at students age 4 and those entering kindergarten and first grade and provide staffing and a curriculum at Bell and Kelly elementary schools.

Parental participation is a requirement of the program, to help the student’s long-term success.

The program will start on Aug. 1, with more sessions with students after school starts to continue the momentum, said Beverly Mathis, a director at the foundation.

The program will have four-hour sessions daily for three weeks in August, with weekly sessions with students for 11 weeks between September and November. The goal is to serve 64 students.

In a pilot program completed during the 2012-13 school year, 62.3 percent of students who participated showed growth in literacy, according to the foundation’s presentation.

Under the agreement, the foundation will provide reports on the program each January and July.

Mayor Carolyn Goodman said the program will help youngsters develop English and reading skills early in their academic career, setting them on the path to success.

“Education’s the key,” she said. “It’s the key to life.”

The council voted 6-0, with Mayor Pro Tem Stavros Anthony absent.

Contact reporter Ben Botkin at bbotkin@reviewjournal.com or 702-405-9781.